A new computer virus struck several companies yesterday, but it is spreading relatively slowly compared to similar worms such as "ILOVEYOU" and "Melissa." The virus is spread via an e-mail attachment. The e-mail is usually titled "funny," "life stages" or "jokes" and carries an attachment
labeled "life_stages.txt" or "life_stages.txt.shs." The attachment carries a ".shs" suffix, but many computers automatically hide the suffix, thus making
it appear that the attachment is a harmless .txt file. It opens a joke in Microsoft Notepad while activating the virus, replicating and sending itself out to all listings in the user's Microsoft Outlook address book. Although not as damaging as some recent viruses, this latest worm does modify the user's registry and could overload corporate mail servers. It can also
spread via IRC and America Online's Instant Messenger.
http://www.airsecurity.com/hotspots/hotspots.asp

Slowly my A*s! I have over 200 copies in my inbox! I have told our IT staff to shut down the inbound mail connection until the virus signature files are updated!

Dorian

I got it, and guess who I got it from?

[email protected] (redacted)

This is the company that runs WebFlyerNet for Randy. She must have had my email address in her Outlook program.

Well, I fell for it. Looked just like a text attachment so I downloaded it and opened it. After the text part was displayed I knew something was going on as my hard disk was working hard. Then my computer crashed.

I brought it back up with no problem and haven't noticed any problems since. I went to McAffe and downloaded the latest .dat virus detection files and ran a scan, but it didn't find anything.

Don't really know what to do next.

Our company got the "Jokes" virus and was shut down for the whole day.

I had heard of it so I did not open the message which was sent to me, so no harm was done. I have no idea how I got it, it could have been one of many, many people.

I just hope that people would USE the tools we have instead of ABUSING them.

Good luck everyone,

DD

The University of Pennsylvania email was hit with the life stages virus today. But luckily the server scans for viruses and won't let you open the attachment.

I wish the media would stop refering to these as "computer" viruses. They don't affect computers, they only affect computers running Look Out!, er, Outlook.

Too bad Microsoft doesn't fall under FAA jurisdiction. They would be soooo grounded.

We now return to our regularly-scheduled travel discussion.

[This message has been edited by EPS (edited 06-21-2000).]

Delta Air Lines, the nation's third largest airline, closed down its corporate e-mail system on Monday as a protective measure after detecting the virus on employee computers. On Tuesday, computer systems were back in operation, but outside e-mail was limited, a spokesman said.

It's the wild world we live in! We just gotta take the "other stuff" along with the good.

I got the following mail today:

This virus works on the honor system. Please send it to everyone that you know and delete all your files. Thank you for your help.

We got hit by this too, but there have been so many viruses lately most everyone realized what it was ... I think two or three people out of several thousand opened it up ... everyone else realized it for what it was and just deleted it.

I've been following the news reports, and it seems a lot of companies aren't admitting they got hit, because the reports say only a few hundred companies got hit, but I'm sure it's a lot higher than that.

Ahh - one of the fringe benefits of using a "minority" platform! Macs are immune to this, as well as to Melissa and her family. (I'm not getting on a "Macintosh is better" kick. It's just that their lower market share makes them a less attractive target.)

okay, i am getting an i-mac....

Why switch platforms? Groupwise is also immune (at least I hope it is since I opened the sucker recently...).

I suspect it's actually the cumulative effect of three factors:

1. Macs are a less attractive target because there are fewer of them, which also makes a virus that depends on lots of connectivity less likely to propagate.

2. For the same reason, there are fewer people who have the detailed familiarity with the platform that writing a virus requires.

3. At the risk of starting another holy war, I suspect that Macintosh users are, as a general tendency of the group and not denying the existence of many exceptions on both sides (is THAT enough to satisfy the objectivity police?) less oriented to the technology inside their computers and hence less likely to be able to write one than are Windows users.

That said, the headline at the top of the cover of the current Popular Mechanics claims to finally settle the PC-vs.-Mac debate. Their conclusion: whichever one you like. Amen.